Poland ordered by EU court to halt output at major lignite mine

Poland may need to shut down a coal-fired power plant supplying 7% of the country’s electricity after the European Court of Justice sided with the Czech Republic’s environmental suit against its northern neighbour.

The tribunal ordered Poland’s biggest utility PGE to halt lignite extraction from the Turow mine in the south-west of Poland until the final ruling in the case is issued. PGE had warned that could mean closing a nearby power plant that supplies power to about three-million households.

Last month, the State-controlled utility also warned that a negative ruling could be a threat to Poland’s power system. On Friday, PGE said on Twitter the decision is a “path to a wild energy transformation.”